


Dancing Lessons

by orangeintheovercast



Category: Dragon Age, Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Dancing, Dorian is thirsty af, Fluff, M/M, Pining, Unrequited Love, also Maryden is there
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-28
Updated: 2016-07-28
Packaged: 2018-07-27 09:19:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,964
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7612513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orangeintheovercast/pseuds/orangeintheovercast
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>“Remind me why we’re doing this again.”</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>“We’re doing this, dear Griffin, because if you show up at the Empress’ ball without knowing how to dance, every single noble in attendance will drop dead from horror.”</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>“I don’t see how that’s a problem.”</i>
</p>
<p>In which the Inquisitor sucks at dancing, and Dorian offers to educate him as an excuse for them to spend time together.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dancing Lessons

**Author's Note:**

> So the whole idea for this fic came from Toby, aka [ earthprincewu ](http://earthprincewu.tumblr.com) over on Tumblr, who has a fantastic Inquisitor named Griffin and who was kind enough to let me write about him. As a bit of context, Griffin romances Cassandra during the Inquisition timeline, and doesn't end up with Dorian until after the events of Trespasser. Which means Dorian has a load of pining to do before he and Griffin actually get together. This is one of those moments.

Everything was going according to plan.

Though it’d been difficult to wrangle the Inquisitor away from his ambassador’s endless to-do list, Dorian had finessed a spare hour out of Josephine to have Griffin to himself. All he’d had to do was stress how important his idea would be when Griffin had the entire Winter Palace fawning over him in a few weeks, and Josephine had practically shoved Dorian on his way so they could get started.

Of course, convincing Griffin to cooperate was a different battle.

“Remind me why we’re doing this again.”

The two of them were standing across from each other in Griffin’s quarters – the most private space Dorian could think of for this little endeavor. Sunlight streamed into the room from the open balcony, catching in Griffin’s hair and highlighting the skeptical arch of his eyebrows.

“We’re doing this, dear Griffin, because if you show up at the Empress’ ball without knowing how to dance, every single noble in attendance will drop dead from horror.”

Griffin remained unmoved. “I don’t see how that’s a problem.”

“Oh, it’s not.” Dorian chuckled, imagining that scene unfolding, the Inquisition looking on as Griffin scandalized the entire Orlesian court at once. “But I’m sure Lady Montilyet would be beside herself, and then we’d all be in for it.”

A grimace twisted Griffin’s mouth. No one wanted to face Josephine’s wrath. She was already at her wit’s end trying to prepare for the upcoming masquerade. “How about I just don’t dance with anyone? That’ll save us all some trouble.”

“I believe you’re grasping at straws now, Inquisitor.” Griffin’s nose wrinkled as soon as his title slipped into the conversation. Dorian smirked. “Come on, I promise it won’t be as terrible as you think. I’ve been told I’m quite the talented dancer.”

“Alright. Alright, fine.” Griffin ran a hand down the side of his face, resignation in the slump of his shoulders. It was rather endearing. “But why does Maryden have to be here?”

He gestured off to one side, where Skyhold’s resident minstrel was leaning against the wall, patiently waiting for her cue. She straightened when Griffin called attention to her, offering him a shrug and a smile. “What’s a dance lesson without music to practice with?”

“Exactly.” Dorian nodded his approval, earning a thumbs-up in return. “I asked her to assist us for a bit. Don’t worry, she’s under strict oath not to laugh at you.”

“Great.” There was a faint pink tinge to Griffin’s cheeks when he met Dorian’s gaze again. Dorian’s heart skipped a beat. “So where do we start?”

Rather than respond in words, Dorian closed the gap between him and Griffin until there was hardly a foot separating them. He reached for Griffin’s right hand, lifting it from his side and twining their fingers together. Then he drew Griffin’s left up to his shoulder, resting it there. He found Griffin’s waist last, curling his hand around it and squeezing softly.

“We start here.” He dropped his voice to a murmur, just shy of a purr, really. It was enough to mask the way his nerves were tingling everywhere, hyper-sensitive to how close Griffin was.

Griffin’s blush darkened a few shades, his green eyes flitting to each point where he and Dorian touched. Dorian chalked Griffin’s reaction up as a small victory – the butterflies in his stomach certainly agreed. “O-okay. Now what?”

“Now you follow my lead.” Dorian glanced over at their audience of one, winking. “Maryden, if you please.”

Settling her lute in her arms, Maryden began to pluck at the strings, a slow, simple tune drifting through the air. Dorian counted the rhythm in his head, easing into the sway of the song, and then pushed against Griffin’s hand on the downbeat. Griffin put up a little resistance to being moved – Dorian could feel how tense he was – but he mirrored Dorian’s advance anyway, probably more out of instinct than anything else.

They hardly made it three steps when Griffin stumbled, his feet getting tangled up in each other. He huffed, grip tightening on Dorian’s shoulder as he glared down at his boots. “I have no idea what I’m doing.”

“I noticed.” Dorian bit his lip to hold back a laugh. Irked Griffin was adorable. It was hardly fair. “Just keep in mind that you’re the opposite of me. I go forward, you go backward. I step with my right foot, you step with your left. That’s all you need to know.”

Griffin didn’t seem convinced, but he allowed Dorian to restart their dance, his movements rather disjointed as he watched their feet. They made a gradual circle around the room, pausing only twice – once when Griffin squashed Dorian’s toes, again when he bashed his hip on the edge of his desk. By the time they were back in front of Maryden, Griffin had actually picked up the rhythm, the vise grip he had on Dorian relaxing as he fell into the ebb and flow of the dance.

It wasn’t until they’d made a second, much less painful loop that Dorian spoke again. “See, not so bad, is it?”

“Tell that to my new bruise.” The words were deadpan, but Dorian caught the twitch at the edge of Griffin’s mouth, as if he were fighting off a smile.

“Oh, hush. Last I checked, you’ve had much worse than a tiny bruise.” Dorian bopped Griffin on the head with their twined hands. “I suppose I could patch it up for you, if it bothers you that much. Who knew a desk would be enough to best our big, bad Inquisitor.”

The blush flared right back up in Griffin’s cheeks. Another lovely victory. “Shut up. You’re supposed to be dancing with me, not making fun of me.”

“I don’t see why I can’t do both.”

Griffin finally lifted his head so he could meet Dorian’s eyes properly, his face morphing into a frustrated pout. That look practically begged a kiss – Dorian twirled Griffin out and away from him instead, putting some distance between himself and temptation. When he drew Griffin back in, the pout was gone, but the flush had spread all the way up to the tips of his ears, and Dorian wasn’t sure if that was better or worse.

The music shifted around them as Maryden finished out her first song, blending it into the opening notes of a second. This one was faster, peppier, and Dorian adjusted his pace to it, guiding Griffin back into the swing of things. It took a moment or two of tripping for them to find the right balance, but eventually Griffin got the hang of it, a crease forming in his brow from how hard he was focusing.

They made a few more laps around the room, and Dorian decided it was about time they added a little more flair to this dance. He threw in another twirl every so often, making sure Griffin had his footing before pulling him back again. A particularly devious idea struck him as they passed the balcony windows, and on their next turn, he spun Griffin all the way into his body, leaving them standing back-to-chest. Griffin’s arms were crossed in front of him, both hands held in Dorian’s now as they swayed together.

“Uh, Dorian?” Griffin’s expression was hidden at this angle, but Dorian knew he was flustered by his tone. “Not to question your teaching methods, but shouldn’t I be learning how to lead?”

Dorian grinned, leaning to one side a bit so he could speak closer to Griffin’s ear. “Yes, but how can you expect to learn if you haven’t seen the proper way to do it first?”

It was most likely his imagination, but Dorian swore Griffin shivered a little. “I mean – sure? I guess?”

Chuckling, Dorian released Griffin from his hold, helping him circle around so they were facing each other again. Maryden was reaching the bridge of her song, and Dorian swept Griffin up in the tune with him, zigzagging across the floor just shy of too fast. The world blurred out of focus around them, Dorian’s senses consumed by the music and Griffin’s hands on him. Every so often, Griffin’s gaze locked with his, that deep green setting off little bursts of warmth in Dorian’s chest.

A tiny smile broke through Griffin’s embarrassment as they whirled about, and Dorian nearly melted on the spot.

As the song approached its final crescendo, Dorian debated what kind of grand finale he could pull off with his inexperienced partner. He figured he’d play it safe, twirling Griffin around once, twice, and then reeling Griffin in so he could catch him with both arms. Maryden hit her last chord just as Dorian dipped Griffin toward the floor, supporting him under his back. Griffin flailed a bit with the sudden gravity shift, hooking his hands around Dorian’s neck so he wouldn’t plummet to the ground.

His eyes were blown wide when they found Dorian’s again, his breath leaving him in a gasp. “Maker, Dorian, a warning would’ve been nice.”

“Perhaps, but that would’ve ruined the spontaneity, and where’s the fun in that?” Dorian smirked down at Griffin, relishing in having Griffin hanging off him, essentially at his mercy.

“I could’ve fallen on my ass, you know.”

“Me? Let you fall?” Dorian leaned in closer so they were almost nose-to-nose. “Perish the thought.”

If Griffin’s face got any redder, Dorian was certain he would’ve burst into flames. Griffin blinked, frozen like a halla caught in torchlight. Dorian could practically see steam coming out of his ears as he struggled to think, probably scrambling for a snarky remark.

Someone rapped on the door to Griffin’s quarters, making Dorian jump and nearly drop Griffin after all.

“Inquisitor? Sister Nightingale sent me to find you. She says it’s urgent business.”

Griffin cursed under his breath, and just like that, their moment was gone. He pushed against Dorian with one hand, and Dorian straightened them both out again, letting his arms drop to his sides. “Duty calls, I suppose.”

“As always.” Griffin ran his fingers through his hair, an apology written in his frown. “Thanks for the lesson. Hopefully I won’t be a total disaster at the Empress’ stupid ball now.”

“More like a minor disaster, I imagine.” Dorian smoothed out a few wrinkles in his pants, subtly avoiding Griffin’s eyes. No need to tip him off to how disappointed Dorian was. “We can always squeeze in some more practice, if you like. There’s still _so_ much I haven’t taught you yet.”

All he got was a groan for that one, and he couldn’t help but chuckle. “Maybe. I should get going for now, though. Find out what Leliana wants with me.” Dorian glanced up just in time for Griffin to turn his back, heading for the exit. “See you around, Dorian.”

“And you, Griffin. Do try to stay out of trouble, will you?”

“No promises.”

As soon as the door shut behind Griffin, Dorian released all his breath in a heavy sigh, tipping his head back to stare at the ceiling. The interruption had been an unwelcome reminder of his place in Griffin’s circle – close friend and occasional dance teacher. Nothing more. No matter how much he wished otherwise.

Was it too much to ask that he indulge himself for a little while? Pretend their situation was different?

A bout of snickers drew his attention to his right, where Maryden was pushing off the wall, her lute tucked under one arm. Dorian quirked an eyebrow at her. “Something funny?”

Maryden shook her head, smiling at him with a mixture of amusement and pity. “You’ve just got it bad, that’s all.”

Dorian glanced back the way Griffin had gone, his absence already weighing on Dorian’s shoulders. “Believe me, I know.”

**Author's Note:**

> Be sure to go check out [ earthprincewu ](http://earthprincewu.tumblr.com) if you want to know more about Griffin! Toby has tons of other awesome Dragon Age OCs too, and he's a super cool person anyway, so he deserves lots of love. Thanks for reading!


End file.
